10 February 2015

Coming into resistance during sitting meditation can be released easily with the technique or idea of moving with the force, by letting it be an experience of expression - be it an idea, thought, sensation or emotion.

Many people have a feeling of being still in the mind and body are the only way. If you look at the spectrum of no movement at all and lots of movement on the other end, when you move into one end of the spectrum only, it can generate imbalance. Balance can be created by expelling energy through movement - before or after a sitting meditation or as a technique for variety for your routine.

Any motivators are ultimately pushing you forward or leading you on your path. If you go into the resistance, experience it, you are no longer working at the opposite end, against the force.

Active or moving meditation can allow the body to release resistance, to move without judgement - this can be helpful to settle the body and the mind by expelling energy. The thoughts can settle - the emotions can settle -- energy can be more grounded because you can acknowledge and work with the resistance.

02 March 2014

Humor is great, especially when cooking. Having fun and keeping things simple is what life and cooking are all about. Ayurveda can be a personal, intuitive healing path. Mix in a little laughter into your daily meals and see what you get!

17 February 2014

I love all the beautiful colors that nature provided for this meal. My mother always said to have lots of color on your plate and I believe she was right!

I roasted this veggie rainbow delight with roasted garlic olive oil, sea salt, and quality stock and served it with an aioli mix of mayo, stone ground mustard, and that roasted garlic Evoo (extra virgin olive oil).

---Ayurveda means "Life Science" in Sanskrit. When you hear your yoga teacher say "tadasana," that's Sanskrit. One of the main ways we can support our lives is through a daily practice. You've probably had a meal (hopefully) every day of your life. Why not find new ways to support your health from a certified Ayurvedic chef & yogi? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayurveda

As I went through my baseball playing career, I developed a sense of calm when things got crazy. Sometimes things were really wild and impacted my actions negatively. I remember playing at University of Texas against Houston Street and the rest of the Longhorns. The fans had bullhorns outside the outfield fence and sat on top of rented vans to yell at us. LSU fans played nice with the families and girlfriends of the visiting team and then got to know their names. They then heckled the players with the names of their families and girlfriends. This was a little unnerving, being in such wild atmospheres. I was a pitcher, needing to keep cool under pressure, and not get wild. Sometimes I won the internal battle and was able to remember the fundamentals that I developed playing catch with my dad. Sometimes I got distracted. Either way, all of it was a learning experience. I never played in Yankee Stadium, but I have been in some pretty hostile environments in Venezuela, the Dominican Republic & the minor leagues. Keeping a sense of calm helped me to execute the pitches I needed to execute, yet even then most of it was left up to chance after I threw the ball. Maybe the umpire misses the call. Maybe the catcher drops the ball! Maybe the hitter gets jammed but gets an infield single. What can you ultimately control? Your breath and how you respond to life. Yes you can create the pitch you want, form an intention or goal, but then it is up to you and life as to how it will all play out.

I've been able to get over not reaching the big leagues. My agent last week told me something like 8% of all players drafted into the MLB ranks make a career out of baseball. Most move on after 2-5 years into something else. Me? I'm enjoying my time after my playing days.

07 February 2014

This is the time of the year where resolutions and goals that are set in January and during that foggy New Year's Eve party begin to get bogged down.

Keep up the good works and know that we are all pulling for you, All of us!

Goals, desires, dreams and aspirations start with you. A little seed of inspiration wanted to see something better for your life in 2014 and beyond. Keep watering that seed.

You are the thing you've been looking for all along. Seeking outside yourself for motivation and answers creates a dependent relationship. However we are all co-creating on this planet. Solve the riddle! You are master of your fate, Kings & Queens of your destiny.

If Beyonce can do it, you can.

If Jim Abbott, a one-armed left-handed major league pitcher can do it, you can.

If I can breathe in a moment of peace, you can too.

Remember you are well along your way to getting all that you want out of life!

11 January 2014

Your body is always present in this moment. It cannot be otherwise. It is only the mind that wanders from the present moment. Sometimes this can be a good thing! Sometimes it isn't.

Find the mind connecting with the body through your breath when you are feeling off-tune. You've been breathing your entire life, sometimes consciously, sometimes unconsciously. I invite you to take one conscious breath today and find the present moment through this mind-body connection.

The present is always here for you. It's the mind that forgets that sometimes.

Your breath and the beat of your heart in your body never forget. Your breath can create happiness and real ease in this present moment. Your deeper exhale can release toxins/waste from the body and deepen your feeling of peace.

Breathe in what you want to create today and in 2014. Breathe out and let go of what you want to release.

09 January 2014

This was one of my most favorite Florida days in St. Petersburg Instructional League, right before they shipped me off to Arizona Fall League. I had a lot of fun and felt in control of my body and my pitching at every moment. Lots of sunshine and success to you!

03 January 2014

I'm visiting Mantra again in my life; it's been a welcome addition to an already amazing spiritual and physical journey.
Vibration, emotion, thought, manifestation - all have their roots in the non-physical, and also the physical.
Singing, chanting, having mantra, and especially sanskrit manta, in my life is a scientifically proven tool to uplift mood and heal that which can be made whole.
I can have an audience or none at all.
It all means that Who I am is being expressed through vibration.

11 December 2013

"hi friends - today dec 11 marks the anniversary of osho's birth. without osho we would never have met, would never have made music together. it was in his ashram, in india, that we first began to sing together, 23 years ago. today we honour his great love, his guidance and his challenge to live life fully, authentically, in trust to the great spirit that watches over us all. happy birthday beloved guruji - namaste - love." -- deva premal and miten

I walked into a Deva Premal and Miten concert in Dallas this October 2013 and before knowing that their group had been a part of the Osho ashram, I knew the presence was familiar to me. I couldn't place why. It felt like a recognition, a familiarity.

It was, in fact, a presence that Deva Premal and Miten had experienced in their time with Osho. I have been with that presence through my experiences in Costa Rica. There, everything dropped in and clicked. I learned how to surf, how to eat well, and how to dance and celebrate life.

I visited in 2008, 2009 and in 2010 and will always carry that my memory. Osho makes things happen! I teach from what I learned there in every class. Osho always said that Dynamic Meditation was his greatest gift. I love sharing that practice with others, as well as his Kundalini Meditation. Get your mind out of the head and into the body!

~ Brian Hendu

"hi friends - today dec 11 marks the anniversary of osho's birth. without osho we would never have met, would never have made music together. it was in his ashram, in india, that we first began to sing together, 23 years ago. today we honour his great love, his guidance and his challenge to live life fully, authentically, in trust to the great spirit that watches over us all. happy birthday beloved guruji - namaste - love." -- deva premal and miten I walked into a Deva Premal and Miten concert in Dallas this October 2013 and before knowing that their group had been a part of the Osho ashram, I knew the presence was familiar to me. I couldn't place why. It felt like a recognition, a familiarity. It was, in fact, a presence that Deva Premal and Miten had experienced in their time with Osho. I have been with that presence through my experiences with Tyohar, a spiritual man who went to Osho's ashram in Pune, India. He said that there, everything dropped in and clicked for him. Tyohar began teaching and in 2000 set up his ashram in Costa Rica, PachaMama. I visited PachaMama in 2008, 2009 and in 2010 and will always carry that spiritual gift in my memory. Osho makes things happen! I teach from what I learned there in every class. Osho always said that Dynamic Meditation was his greatest gift. I love sharing that practice with others, as well as his Kundalini Meditation. Get your mind out of the head and into the body!~ Brian Hendu

10 December 2013

Really cool to have this kind of exposure so early in my teaching career; there is a link to this website in a major magazine! I started this page in August of 2009 and it has since covered my explorations in life in Costa Rica to my proud moments as a home chef in Austin. I have passions in health, spirituality, happiness and fitness, and I invite you to try out my classes and workshops and peruse my entries on this site.

Currently I teach publicly at Your Yoga in Austin on Fridays at 12pm and have reasonably priced private appointments for chef consultations and yoga/relax&restore/meditation sessions.

10 November 2013

Was a delicious and delectable meal! I served it over white rice ( hot sauce ) and black pepper! Delicious Cajun treat! Thanks to all my Coonass Cajun Friends! Love it down there. Love this kind of food.

www.therapyandpilates.com or check out their biz on FB. They recently finished a great fundraiser for The Breast Cancer Resource Center of Central Texas, where I taught a class on Macrobiotic and Ayurvedic cooking last January for breast cancer survivors.

2) We (Mark Jaeger and I) are actively signing people up for Yoga Explosion, a full weekend of yoga and pyrotechnics at Stunt Ranch Austin on November 8-10 weekend. I am providing food support for an explosive retreat on the ranch and I will need a few helpers for this event. Workshop discounts will be available for 3-4 food volunteers who must sign up for the whole weekend. Lots of mentor hours available to learn by doing in Ayurveda.

Ayurvedic meals provided on site for Friday night, Saturday lunch and dinner, and Sunday lunch. Chai and snacks throughout. Contact Mark Jaeger for volunteer details and to sign up go to www.jaegeryoga.com

3) I will be working a few retreats/spa excursions next year from Austin to the Apline/Marfa area & the Dallas area for three and four day excursions in spring & summer & fall 2014. Yoga classes, dynamic meditation, mantra and spa passes included. We will have travel options for flying from the Austin airport or for chartered bus. Suggested lodging list provided with the option for prebooked lodging included in workshop cost. Course details, deposit amt and dates tba.

05 May 2013

I took the liberty of the colder weather we had in Austin last week and turned on the oven to roast these potatoes. They came out beautifully with a little olive oil, sea salt and herbs du Provence. Roast at 475 for 20-30 min.

15 April 2013

I didn't find anything, he said. But now I don't have to look anymore. -- Gattis

The seeker is a role that is not difficult to see at first glance. The simplest things are there, yet there is so much depth behind it if you pause. What is the role of the seeker? Is it to question the mind, question the environment, to never accept at face value? Sometimes that can look like unmotivated, slow, boring life. Only questioning, never simply accepting life as it is? Finally I think, the seeker simply understands the depth in the above quote and begins to stop looking, because there isn't anything to find. Emoting can be an indication of coming closer to "finding your path" or "understanding your truth," but it can never be less than a willing thing, to stop looking.

Things like this quote, have much of the buddha in it. And look how it is so playfully Zen, a meaning wrapped up in a puzzle that is wrapped up in its simplicity. There is happiness in the arrival to that truth, but the happiness does not outweigh what you had to go through. What you went through was all necessary and needed in order for you to arrive at the conclusion, to give up your seeking, to stop your looking.

29 March 2013

Hungry for a snack? Not a whole lot of grab and go things in my kitchen. I have chocolate, technically. It's cacao beans whole with skin on. A little bitter compared to a Hersey's bar.

Beans? Not in a can. I have dried pinto and black that need to be sorted, washed and soaked first.

I have one cabinet dedicated to my assortment of dried sea vegetables. These are great in broths, soaked and stir fried, or in longer cooking methods.

Having a kitchen set up in this way helps me think forward in the week, getting myself prepared for my meals. It also makes it more difficult to have mindless snacking going on.

Kitchen set up is a huge factor in how we eat. Diet and health related issues all can lead back to what you put into your body every day. Grocery shopping and healthy ingredients along with intelligent use of spices like turmeric, allspice and fennel can help.

Grab and go things aren't terrible, but make sure they come from a healthy source and understand they have a shelf life.

Even when traveling, try to stop off at grocery stores instead of fast food places and grab some bananas and other fruits. Quality chocolate bars, nuts, dried fruits and sunflower seeds are my favorite snacks on the go, especially when on a boat in Watagua Bay, NZ or on top of a mountain ridge near Queenstown.

23 March 2013

Chavanprash jam is a sweet and smoky jam made from the amalaki fruit.
I like it as a tonic taken first thing in the morning, or with a dish of spiced rice and curry, served on the side. Here is the blurb from Banyan Botanicals: "Chyavanprash is a traditional Ayurvedic herbal jam made in a base of amalaki fruit, a rich source of antioxidants. An excellent rejuvenative, it nourishes and strengthens the body, providing energy and vitality. Prepared with all-natural ingredients, Banyan Botanicals' Chyavanprash is specially formulated in India, where our manufacturer has produced authentic Ayurvedic jams for over 50 years. A tonic for both young and old, Chyavanprash promotes digestion and metabolism while supporting the body’s natural defenses." http://www.banyanbotanicals.com/products.asp?dept=1005

I normally don't plug products so blatantly, but it is hard to make this yourself, as the amalaki fruit, or Indian gooseberry, is difficult to procure here in America. But maybe you are reading this from another country, or from India itself and you have many different uses of this fruit. I believe it is similar to the goji berries from the highlands of China, which we can only get in dried form here in the states.

Either way, I can get chavyanprash jam here in Austin at the local People's Pharmacy. There are many different spellings for the concotion, and varied ingredients.
Check out the wikipedia page on Chawanprash: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chyawanprash

One teaspoon full per day and you'll be floating in full lotus position six inches off the floor in no time.

09 March 2013

Here is my selection of produce from Wheatsville coop. Jbg carrots are one of the most popular things in town at the markets. Sweet, local and organic. The cauliflower looks beautiful and will fit in nicely with my red lentil and cashew curry.